Playa Zancudo

Playa Zancudo
Coordinates: 08°32′38.59″N 83°08′48.15″W
Country	Costa Rica
Province	Puntarenas Province
Canton	Golfito Canton
Population
• Total	450
[1]

Playa Zancudo is a village in Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica near the Golfo Dulce. It has a population of approximately 450.[2]

Geography

It is located 9.5 kilometers south of Golfito.[3] Zancudo is located on a long and narrow peninsula, sometime only 100 yards wide, at the mouth of the Rio Colorado.[3] On one side of the peninsula is Zancudo's beach, protected from the full force of Pacific waves, while the other is home to a mangrove swamp.[3] The whole beach is 6 miles long, with the southern three miles of it having jungle and farmland on the east side and most of the town being located within the northernmost mile.[2] The town of Playa Zancudo contains a school, several churches, a soccer field, some Tico restaurants and bars, three sportfishing areas, and a general store.[2]

History

The area around Golfito's port was developed by the United Fruit Company in the 1930s.[2] While this was happening, excess bananas that washed down the Rio Coto river came upon Playa Zancudo's beaches.[2] During this time, pig farms thrived on the leftover bananas.[2] Americans began moving to Zancudo in the 1980s, with the rise in foreign settlement aiding the demise of pig farming in Zancudo.[2]

Transportation

The nearest airport is in Golfito.[3]

The dirt road which connects the community to nearby towns has daily bus service in and out of the town.

References

1. Parrales, Freddy (2 December 2008). "Vía a playa Zancudo sigue en abandono total" [Road to Zancudo beach is still completely abandoned]. La Nación (in Spanish).
2. "About Playa Zancudo". Cabinas Sol Y Mar. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
3. Samson, Karl; Jane Aukshunas (1994). Frommer's Comprehensive Travel Guide: Costa Rica. Simon & Schuster, Inc. p. 201.